Battle of Rapture
|date= 3 November 2552 – 27 January 2553 |place= Rapture, Ora system |result= Separatist victory |side1= ' Covenant separatists ' |side2= ' Covenant loyalists ' |side3= |side4= |commanders1= *Tyr 'Nbekai *Rtan 'Wunabee *Qhor 'Okgarree *Yhal 'Aramee *Shul 'Damundee *Tusa 'Divamee |commanders2= *Baladus *Ardus *Absolum *Glom Bashk |commanders3= |commanders4= |forces1=Fleet of Exuberant Harmony Fleet of Absolution |forces2=Rapture defense fleet |forces3= |forces4= |casual1= |casual2= |casual3= |casual4= |civilian= }} The Battle of Rapture was a major armed engagement of the Covenant Schism, fought primarily from 3 November 2552 to 27 January 2553, in which Sangheili-aligned separatist forces battled Covenant loyalists for control over Rapture, a valuable resource world in the Ora system. The battle began when the Rapture defense fleet and related forces, led by Chieftain Baladus, launched a surprise assault against Sangheili units present on and above Rapture–which were originally commanded by Fleetmaster Rtan 'Wunabee–on November 3. Beginning as an asymmetric insurgency, the battle escalated with the arrival of the Fleet of Absolution–led by Supreme Commander Tyr 'Nbekai–on November 19, upon which the engagement began in earnest. Background Though a small and rugged world, Usu'a–known in the human English language as Rapture–has been a crucial asset to the Covenant empire's expansionary efforts beyond the Kiel Expanse since the 4th Age of Conversion. The many matériel foundries, deuterium-tritium refineries, and agricultural habitats that dot its surface, along with the several dozen repair-and-refit platforms and drydocks in its orbit were essential in maintaining the crusading armadas on the frontier. Additionally, much of the planet's strategic value also lay in its local interstellar jump points (IJP), which allow for abnormally brief faster-than-light travel even when compared with some IJPs; this meant the Covenant could assemble immense invasion forces and mobilize them across vast distances of space with unusual speed and efficiency. The advantages that Rapture afforded were obvious to the High Prophet of Truth and in his scheme to oust the Sangheili from the Covenant, the Hierarch moved to consolidate his hold on this resource world through furtive political scheming. In August 2552, Glom Bashk was appointed colonial administrator and charged with overseeing fleet logistics from the planet directly. The Hierarch also began the process of replacing the local Sangheili garrison with the Jiralhanae-dominated Domus Legion commanded by Baladus the Butcher, a general loyal to Chieftain Tartarus. With these staffing changes, Truth hoped to secure Rapture as a key staging area for rapid assault, supply, and asset denial operations across the full breadth of Covenant space once the coup against the Elites began in earnest. Unfortunately for the Prophet and his conspirators, however, no one could foresee how delayed the transition of duties between the Elites and Brutes would be. On 1 November 2552, three months after the reassignment order was originally given, roughly 40% of the Sangheili garrison–including their commander, Olta 'Kosamee, who was tasked with assisting Baladus in the transition–was still present on Rapture. Furthermore, the loss of Unyielding Hierophant and its fleet on 13 September 2552 inadvertently led to the diversion of hundreds of military assets, mostly controlled by the Elites, through the Ora system; between September and November, there was rarely a day in which Sangheili-commanded vessels were not present in the skies above Rapture. In the early morning hours of 3 November 2552, the 30-vessel Fleet of Exuberant Harmony–led by Fleetmaster Rtan 'Wunabee–arrived in-system seeking replenishment. They were begrudgingly granted access to the orbital shipyards by Administrator Bashk's office but shortly after, the conspirators received word directly from Tartarus that the time to eliminate the Sangheili had finally come. For Bashk, 'Wunabee's presence in the system meant the order could not come at a more inopportune time. He proposed temporarily holding off on any attack and maintaining an intelligence blackout long enough for the Fleet of Exuberant Harmony to simply depart, unaware of the Great Schism's outbreak, depriving the Elites of any naval power. The Butcher dismissed this approach as excessively cautious however and instead, issued the order to his officers, both in orbit and on the surface, to immediately begin purging the Elites from Rapture. Timeline of the battle Fighting erupts On the morning of 3 November 2552, Jiralhanae-commanded loyalists launched a blistering offensive operation targeting the oblivious Sangheili present on and above Rapture. In orbit, the newly-promoted Fleetmaster Ardus spearheaded the Rapture defense fleet's initial ambush on the Fleet of Exuberant Harmony, which had most of it's vessels idly docked at orbital platforms for resupply. Siege of Nobil Separatist counter-offensive Escalation and further engagements Aftermath Category:Battles